Holiday

When it comes to holiday hams, whether it’s a Bourbon-Glazed Ham or a Copycat Honey Baked Ham, there are always, always leftovers. Yes, even if you’ve done your research on how to cook a ham and made estimates based on how many people you’re feeding. But honestly, leftover ham dishes can be even tastier than the centerpiece itself. There are plenty of ways — big and small — that we all can use leftover ham, now and later.

I love brunch, you love brunch — I think we’re all on board for a good weekend brunch, yes? The one problem with brunch, however, is figuring out how to make it without having to get up at the crack of dawn to start cooking. That’s why we’re bringing you a roundup of all our favorite make-ahead brunch recipes for whatever plans you may have come the weekend.

Ham is one of my favorite things to serve as a main dish. I’ll either cook my ham in the slow-cooker or bake it in the oven. I love that it’s easy to make and provides the perfect savory foundation to build the rest of your dinner around. In my opinion, a large part of the pleasure of serving ham is enjoying the side dishes that play well with its rich flavor. Plus, leftover ham can be reinvented into several other meals throughout the week or frozen until further notice.

Whether you plan to serve roasted leg of lamb, pan-seared lamb chops, or grilled lamb chops for a special dinner, you’ll want to choose some sides. The beauty of serving lamb as the main is that you can serve it with a wide variety of sides and the meal will taste great. Hearty potatoes dishes pair just as well as bright snappy veggies like green beans.

If you’re buying a big bone-in ham for the holidays this year, consider this your friendly reminder that you’ll be left with a tasty ingredient after all the meat’s been picked off: The ham bone. So, whatever you do, don’t toss it in the compost bin or trash. Ham bones are packed with so much rich, smoky flavor. Don’t have time to put the ham bone to use right away? No problem, just freeze the bone, as you would any other meat bones and food scraps.